NICHE REPORT CHARLOTTE EMERSON GLOBAL SOURCING
This report is going to look at the niche brand Lily Jade. The subjects it will be covering include; Who is behind the label, what the vision of the brand is, the brands history, their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, their competitors, as well as their branding techniques, products, sales, trade fairs, PR and progression plans. I chose Lily Jade because the brand was created to respond to a gap in the market for this particular product and therefore they fulfilled a need for the customer.
A b o u t
Meggan Wood was the soul creator of the brand Lily Jade. The company supplies mothers with a fashionable designer two in one handbag/diaper bag. The bag is a clever combination of style and practicality. Meggan saw a need in the market when she was pregnant with her first child. She says
‘Instead of carrying a quilted bag I would purchase large leather handbags and use a variety of ziplock bags to keep me organised’. As a new mother she wanted something perfectly suited to both her and her baby. She says
‘I told my family I would like to design a fashionable and functional handbag/ diaper bag. Due to the season of life we were in, I shelved my idea for several
L i l y
j a d e
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from my niece Lily. It also describes the soft, gentle side of a woman. The Jade portion comes from my mother’s love of Jade. Both my sisters were adopted. I was the big surprise. My It took a little over a year to finalise the first two prototypes, the Caroline and parents adopted my middle the Madeline handbag/diaper bags. sister from the Philippians The first two bags were named after where my father was Meggan’s daughters. Within the first 12-18 months of start-up they designed stationed in the military. a website, secured manufacturing, My mother wore her jade researched patent-able aspects, sourced proudly. They all of their materials and located the jewellery best international shipping options. were her “diamonds.” There The money and time that went into were also sweet memories starting Lily Jade were daunting for the couple, but they pressed on and of having adopted her exceeded their vision. second daughter. The Jade Lily Jade officially launched in October is symbolic with the strong 2013. The name was a personal decision side of a woman. So we for Meggan, women are both the soft ‘The Lily portion comes Lily and the firm Jade.’ years. When Madeline was three and Caroline was six, my husband, Landon, and I knew it was time to revisit my idea of designing a bag line.’
S t r e n g t h s - Built a strong company in a short amount of time - Feedback from customers has been 95% positive - They have more than doubled their sales from year one to year two -Sold worldwide -Sold over 10,000 bags.
We a k n e s s e s - No big advertisement - Low product styles - Only one market
O p p o t u n i t i e s - An advertising campaign - Room for expansion - Big market in the UK -Collaborations with baby brands - Deals for larger families
T h r e a t s -Competition campaigns - A fall in sales could damage manufacturing costs -An unsuccessful advertising campaign
C o m p e t i t o r As a small niche brand with a completely new product Lily Jade has few competitors. One that has a similar idea is O Bag Store in North London. It is an online shop where you pick and choose your bag, then collect it in London. The bags purpose is simple, you can mix and match the outside bag, an inner bag and straps depending on your style. The companies website says
‘O bags are highly customisable - so you can create your own bespoke handbag and swap around parts to suit. Accessorise your O bag Classic with zip-up inner bags for added functionality, security and privacy. You may never bump into someone else
with the same looking O bag as yours!’ As this company is based in London they are not currently a huge competition to Lily Jade. There are many inner bag organisers that can be purchased from online shops such as Cyclestore and LightInTheBox and in high street stores such as John Lewis and BHS, as well as multinational corporations such as Amazon and eBay.
B r a n d
O v e r v i e w
Lily Jade is a reasonably well known designer brand sold online through their website. Alongside their products is their blog, news, contact, reviews and history of the brand. Their unique selling point is their inner diaper bag, Meggan says
‘Our designs are unique, each bag has a removable, washable inner organiser. Also many of our styles can be carried in three different ways. As a backpack, crossbody and on the shoulder.’ The brand specialises in the handbags themselves, the best seller is the Madeline in Brandy followed by the Elizabeth bag in Camel. As they are such a new brand in the market, Lily Jade has a very relaxed, neat calming feel to it. The colour scheme on the website is mint, light brown and white. It conveys a sense of peace when looking at the website and all the information is clear and precise. Meggan is someone who knows what her customer wants and
she portrays that through her words on the welcome page of her website. The company Lily Jade currently has thirty three different bags each in a variety of colours and materials. They also have leather care products, as most of their bags have a leather exterior. The inner organiser and smaller accessories such as key rings and extra space savers are other items you can purchase online. The most common material they use is leather as it is the most reliable, sturdy and long lasting, which is extremely important for a handbag with such a heavy use and continual day to day wear. The bags themselves are named after girls names who mean something to their creator Meggan, such as her daughters, her family and friends. A new bag is released every 6 months at least however sometimes there can more two, three, or four bags released at once. Costs depend on the options chosen, for example the whole set (which includes the bag, the inner organiser, the accessories such as changing matt, cosmetic bag and key ring) comes in on average at $450. However the items can be purchased individually.
S o c i a l As a brand that only uses social media and bloggers to sell and advertise their products Lily Jade has a huge selling market ahead. Megan Wood says
‘When we launched in October 2013, it was a trickle of sales, we had to prime the marketing pump and that takes time. We only use social media and bloggers to sell and promote our bags. That was our business model from the start. We also decided on a direct sales only model, so we don’t do any wholesaling. In March of 2014, a celebrity, Tori Spelling featured our bag on her blog along with a photo. From there sales started to quickly pick up’.
M e d i a In the future when Lily Jade takes the next steps and start selling in high street stores, the markets that would sell the products best are all over America, England and most of Europe. There will always be a market for this product and this is only the beginning for Lily Jade a brand and company that can move forward in the fashion industry. As the brand was designed and produced by Meggan Wood, she took everything that she needed to do into consideration before the launch. The fact that the business plan was in motion a long time before the company was even invented shows the preparation and passion for getting it right from Meggan. She knew what techniques to use to sell her bags and exactly what type of customer she was aiming at. The brand has never been at trade fairs or wholesaled in other areas as that is something Meggan never intended. However that has the capacity to change in the future marketing of the brand.
T h e Lily Jade are a stay at home kind of brand that has a deliberate policy of creating a team made up of people they know and trust. Megan says
‘We have an amazing team and Lily Jade would not be the same without them. Our business model is also unique in that we hire many stay at home mums who work with us part time. This group of women are some of the most talented, driven and honest women in the
Te a m industry. To say we hit the jackpot with our team is an understatement.’ The team helps to promote the products, advertise their views and give their feedback as well as organise the manufacturing and distribution of the bags. The bags are becoming more and more well known through Youtube as well via their website. Customers all around the world are offering their opinions and reviews on the products for other people who are interested in purchasing them.
T h e
F u t u r e
In relation to the terms of progression in one year, the brand could take social media further with a Twitter account and Instagram. This would increase the advertising of the brand and as a company based around the online products and advertisement through their blog, their website and their Facebook, they could expand these channels. Also in a years time they could launch a full advertising campaign to show off a new collection and their already popular products. Within three years a completely new product could be released in a variety of styles, colours shapes and materials, giving the customer more options. This new product could be a collaboration with a well known baby brand that is known worldwide. This collaboration could create spark in the industry, leading to further collaboration in the future.
o f
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Within 5 years a retail store in Texas may be opened (the place the idea was generated) along with a line of stores advertising to be opened in the coming years. With this will come huge campaigns and foundations for stores to be opened in other countries such as England and other parts of Europe.
C o n c l u s i o n Lily Jade as a brand has cleverly tapped into the needs of a continually growing market. The brand has been developed into successful designer handbag/ diaper bag products that continue to be developed and produced. Creator Meggan Wood has produced a stimulating website and blog to inform her existing customers and interested customers of updates and news of the brand. As the brand continues to grow the customer relations will prove stronger, and the reviews will open up the company more and more. This will push Lily Jade forward in the eyes of the public and it will become well known and trustworthy as a brand. With a strong current stand in the fashion industry and a clear vision of the brands’ future Lily Jade will step comfortably forward and take the next steps of its business plan. Meggan Wood is an inspiring designer who successfully challenged herself to combine style and parenthood in an innovative product.
BIBLOGRAPHY http://www.blog.daydesigner.com/well-designed-life-series-meggan-wood/ https://www.instagram.com/lilyjadeco/ http://www.lily-jade.com/default.asp http://www.obagnorthlondon.co.uk/O-bag-s/1818.htm http://www.lily-jade.com/aboutus.asp https://uk.pinterest.com/lilyjadeco/lily-jade-bloggers/ http://www.puttingmetogether.com/2015/05/better-mom-uniforms-with-lily-jade. html
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